Motion Picture Association of America
The Motion Picture Association of America was founded nearly a hundred years ago, originally as the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America. Before the rating system was established in 1968, movies could either be approved or rejected from theatrical exhibition. In the last two years before that, a "Suggested for Mature Audiences" advisory took effect to allow films containing some stuff that wasn't allowed in movies until then, such as profanity or nudity/sex. Finally, on November 1, 1968, the MPAA introduced their very first rating system. 1968-1970 The first four ratings were as follows: *'G' - General Audiences; all ages admitted. *'M' - Mature Audiences; parental discretion advised *'R' - Restricted; under 16 not admitted unless accompanied by a parent or adult guardian *'X '- No one under 16 admitted 1970-1984 The first major changes to the rating system occurred in 1970. Now they were: *'G' - General Audiences; all ages admitted *'GP'/'PG' - Parental Guidance Suggested; some material may not be suitable for pre-teenagers **The Black Hole was the first film from Walt Disney Pictures to be rated PG on December 21, 1979. *'R' - Restricted; under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian *'X '- No one under 17 admitted The GP rating became PG in 1972. 1984-1990 While not many changes were made to the rating system over the years, a new PG-13 rating went into effect on July 1, 1984. Since then, the ratings have always been listed as follows: *'G' - General Audiences; all ages admitted **The most recent G rated film from Warner Bros. Pictures is The Polar Express, which was released on October 30, 2004. **The most recent G rated film from Paramount Pictures is Charlotte's Web, which was released on December 15, 2006. **The most recent G rated film from Universal Pictures is The Tale of Despereaux, which was released on December 19, 2008. **The last G rated film from 20th Century Fox before the company was sold to Disney was The Peanuts Movie, which was released on November 6, 2015. **The most recent G rated film from Walt Disney Pictures is Toy Story 4, which was released on June 21, 2019. *'PG' - Parental Guidance Suggested; some material may not be suitable for children **Because there is really no age limit set on PG-rated films, most (if not all) of them are still perfectly safe for family viewing. *'PG-13' - Parents Strongly Cautioned; some material may be inappropriate for children under 13 **Dreamscape was the first PG-13 rated film from 20th Century Fox, released on August 17, 1984, and the first film originally rated R before an appeal for this rating. **The Razor's Edge was the first PG-13 rated film from Columbia Pictures, released on October 19, 1984. **Firstborn was the first PG-13 rated film from Paramount Pictures, released on October 26, 1984. **Blame It on the Night was the first PG-13 rated film from TriStar Pictures, released on November 2, 1984. **Dune was the first PG-13 rated film from Universal Pictures, released on December 14, 1984. **Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment was the first PG-13 rated film from Warner Bros., released on March 29, 1985. **Adventures in Babysitting was the first PG-13 rated film from Touchstone Pictures, released on July 3, 1987. *'R' - Restricted; under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian **Down and Out in Beverly Hills was the first R-rated film from Touchstone Films, released on January 31, 1986. *'X '- No one under 17 admitted 1990-present In September 1990, "X" was replaced by "NC-17". *'NC-17 '- No children under 17 admitted (until 1996); No one 17 and under admitted (as of 1996) As of September 2008, anyone born before the NC-17 rating was established can now see movies with that rating. List of highest domestic-grossing films Category:Rating systems